In the 2013 America’s Cup sailboat race in San Francisco Bay, the United States boat, Oracle, had fallen behind. The challenger, New Zealand, was leading by a score of 6–0 with just three more wins needed for victory. 

A complex computer program designed to optimize performance had, so far, guided the US boat. Now, the boat’s skipper, a seasoned sailor, decided that he knew more about sailing than a computer. He overruled the computer’s instructions and went with his own judgment. That led to victory in the next race, followed by two more defeats. But in what has been referred to as one of the greatest comebacks in sports history, the US boat was then triumphant in the next eight races, coming back from 8–1 to win the America’s Cup. 

This raises the question, While today’s algorithms can enable a computer to complete specific tasks, analyze data, learn from its mistakes and adapt, and even write a convincing term paper, will computers ever possess the capacity for the inspiration and intuition (that “gut feeling”) that transcend human knowledge? More to the point, will computers ever be able to receive spiritual intuitions, inspiration, or direction from divine intelligence, God—communications that come through spiritual sense alone?